The Jesuits, 1534-1921: A History of the Society of Jesus from Its Foundation to the Present TimeCampbell, Thomas J. (Thomas Joseph)
History
The Jesuits, 1534-1921: A History of the Society of Jesus from Its Foundation to the Present Time
Campbell, Thomas J. (Thomas Joseph)
Jesuits -- History
Speaking of Bellarmine, Andrew White, in his "Conflict of Science and
Religion" informs us that "there must have been a strain of Scotch in
Bellarmine, because of his name, Robert,"--a typical illustration of the
unreliability of Andrew White as a witness. The first Robert who appears
in Scottish history is the son of William the Conqueror, and
consequently a Norman. Even the name of Robert Bruce frequently occurs
as Robert _de_ Bruce, just as there is a John _de_ Baliol; Robert _de_
Pynkeny, etc. There is also a Robert of Arbrissel, associated with Urban
II in preaching the Crusades; Robert of Geneva, an antipope; Robert de
Luzarches, who had to do with the building of Notre-Dame in Paris, and
scores of others might be cited.
Robert Bellarmine was born at Montepulciano, in 1542. He was a nephew of
Pope Marcellus II, and after entering the Society was immediately
admitted to his vows. He studied philosophy for three years at the Roman
College and was then assigned to teach humanities. In 1567 he began his
theology at Padua, but towards the end of his course, he went to Louvain
to study the prevailing heresies of the day at close range. While there,
his reputation as a preacher was such that Protestants came from England
and Germany to hear him. In 1576 he was recalled to Rome to fill the
recently established chair of controversy, and the lectures which he
gave at that time form the groundwork for his remarkable work "De
controversiis." It was found to be so comprehensive, conclusive and
convincing in its character that special chairs were established in
Protestant countries to refute it. It still remains a classic.
Singularly enough, though Sixtus V had permitted the work to be
dedicated to him, he determined later to put it on the Index, because it
gave only an indirect power to the Holy See in temporal matters. But he
died before carrying out his threat, and his successor, Gregory XIII,
gave a special approbation to the book and appointed its author a member
of the commission to revise the Vulgate, which Sixtus had inaugurated,
but into which certain faults had crept. At Bellarmine's suggestion the
revision was called the "Sixtine edition" to save the reputation of the
deceased Pontiff.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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